Category Archives: Mesa Air Group

Mesa Airlines, Inc. (Phoenix) has announced an agreement with United Airlines (Chicago) to add 15 Embraer 175 aircraft to Mesa’s United Express fleet. Mesa currently operates 30 Embraer aircraft for United Airlines. In addition to the E175s, Mesa operates 20 Bombardier CRJ700 aircraft under the United Express brand.

Bombardier Commercial Aircraft (Montreal) has announced it has delivered the first of seven CRJ900 aircraft to Mesa Air Group, Inc. of Phoenix, Arizona (Mesa Airlines). Mesa will operate the aircraft for American Airlines under the American Eagle brand. The aircraft delivered is one of a firm order for seven announced on March 12, 2015.

The CRJ900 delivery ceremony held on June 30 at Bombardier’s Mirabel, Québec facility, was attended by executives of both Mesa Airlines and Bombardier Commercial Aircraft.

The aircraft delivered will increase Mesa’s fleet of CRJ900 regional jets to 58, reconfirming the airline’s standing as one of the largest operators of this aircraft model. Mesa’s new CRJ900 aircraft are configured with 76 seats in a dual-class interior. The airline also operates 20 CRJ700 aircraft with 70 seats in a three-class interior. By September 2015, Mesa’s currently scheduled deliveries will bring its regional jet fleet total to 115.

As of March 31, 2015, Bombardier had recorded firm orders for 1,865 CRJ Series aircraft, including 391 CRJ900 aircraft.

Mesa Airlines, Inc. (Phoenix) has announced it has reached an agreement in principle, subject to definitive documentation, with Montreal-based Bombardier Inc. for the purchase of seven new CRJ900 NextGen aircraft to operate under a long-term capacity purchase agreement with a major U.S. airline. The aircraft will be purchased new from Bombardier and will bring the total number of CRJ900 aircraft operated by the Company to 64. The Company expects delivery of the seven additional aircraft in 2015. The agreement also includes an undisclosed number of options to purchase additional CRJ900 aircraft.

American Airlines is expanding the agreement with Mesa for these seven new CRJ900s. All 64 CRJ900s will eventually be operated under the American Eagle brand.

Mesa Air Group, Inc. (Phoenix) has announced it will cease its Hawai’i operations under the go! (Honolulu) brand effective April 1, 2014. According to Mesa, “Since June 2006, go! has served its nearly five million passengers with safe, reliable and low fare service.” The group continued:

The decision to cease operations in Hawaii follows significant growth in the Company’s flight operations on the mainland and was a strategic decision to focus the organization on maximizing its growth in the capacity purchase “codeshare” operations which comprise over 98 percent of the Company’s business

“While this was an extremely difficult decision to reach, we believe it is in the best interest of Mesa’s long term strategic objectives, particularly given the Company’s ongoing expansion of aircraft in service with United Airlines and US Airways. Mesa will be placing into service 30 Embraer EMB 175 aircraft with United beginning in June 2014, and is adding 4 Bombardier CRJ900 aircraft with US Airways in 2014, having added 9 CRJ900s in 2013,” said Jonathan Ornstein, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. “With the significant expansion opportunities in flying large regional jets in contracted service, we are re-deploying the go! aircraft to support our existing mainland operations. An additional factor that we accounted for was the long term increase in the cost of fuel, which has more than doubled since go! began service and has caused sustained profitability to be elusive” continued Ornstein.

Under the terms of an agreement with Hawaiian Airlines, go! will be able to re-book passengers ticketed through go! for travel scheduled between April 1, 2014 and June 30, 2014 in specified fare classes on Hawaiian’s Interisland network. go! will refund tickets for passengers who cannot be accommodated on Hawaiian Airlines, or for passengers holding tickets for travel after June 30, 2014. All ticket holders will be contacted by go! reservations representatives regarding the re-accommodations. Customers and travel agents needing additional information may call 1-888-435-9462 or visit the website at .

“go! will continue to provide its passengers with safe and reliable transportation through its last day of service, and will work with our passengers and Hawaiian Airlines to minimize the impact that this announcement will have on our passengers,” noted Chris Pappaioanou, President of go!.

“On behalf of Mesa Air Group, I would like to thank all of our many loyal passengers and the continued hard work and dedication of our employees – all of whom will be given an opportunity to continue their employment with Mesa Airlines. While we say goodbye to our many passengers in Hawaii, we look forward to serving you on the mainland through our significant codeshare operations,” continued Ornstein.

Mesa currently operates 71 aircraft with approximately 407 daily system departures to 85 cities, 36 states, the District of Columbia, Canada and Mexico. Mesa operates as US Airways Express and United Express under contractual agreements with US Airways and United Airlines, respectively. The Company was founded by Larry and Janie Risley in New Mexico in 1982.

Meanwhile, Mokulele Airlines has announced it is honoring the flights purchased on go! Airlines for travel on Mokulele where available. For go! flights that were purchased on Mokulele’s website for travel to Kaua’i and Hilo, passengers should contact Mokulele for refunds. Mokulele Airlines has had a code share agreement with go! since November 2011 when TransPac Aviation purchased the turbo prop division from Mesa Air Group.

Mesa Air Group, Inc. (Mesa Airlines) (Phoenix has announced it has reached an agreement with US Airways, Inc. (Phoenix) to extend the term covering its original 38 Bombardier CRJ900 aircraft currently in operation and for the addition of four CRJ900 aircraft to its current fleet of 47 aircraft under the US Airways Express contract. The term of the agreement covering the 38 aircraft was extended until 2021 and the term for the 4 additional aircraft is 8 years from their induction date. No further details of the agreement were released.

Mesa currently operates 69 aircraft with approximately 396 daily system departures to 77 cities, and recently announced an additional 30 Embraer 175 aircraft will be flying for United Airlines. Mesa operates as US Airways Express and United Express under contractual agreements with US Airways and United Airlines, respectively, and independently as go!.

Eventually the company will become a new American Eagle branded operator with the final merger of the two AOCs into one for American Airlines.

Mesa Air Group, Inc. (Mesa Airlines) (Phoenix) has announced a new agreement with United Airlines (Chicago) that extends the term of its existing fleet of 20 Bombardier CRJ700 regional jet aircraft to 2019 and adds 30 new United owned Embraer 175 (ERJ 175) aircraft under the United Express contract.

Under the terms of this agreement Mesa will place the new Embraer 175 jets into service over the next two years. Mesa will hire approximately 350 pilots, 300 flight attendants, and 200 maintenance and other support personnel to support the additional aircraft.

“This is truly a great day for Mesa. We will continue to work hard to provide the best possible service to United’s customers,” said Jonathan Ornstein, Mesa’s Chairman and CEO. “Mesa began operating under the United Express banner in 1992, and we are delighted to have this opportunity to expand our longstanding partnership. Our first codeshare agreement with United transformed our company, and I am sure this one will do the same. We are also very pleased to rejoin the Embraer family of operators and look forward to working with our many friends there as well.”

Paul Foley, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, said, “It has always been our goal to exceed the expectations of both our partners and customers. We believe this contract is evidence that our operational performance and industry leading cost structure have begun to pay big dividends for the company and our people. Based on data from the Department of Transportation, Mesa has been the number one performing regional airline for each of the last three years. We’d like to thank all of our people who have contributed to our success and enabled us to compete successfully for this new business.”

Mesa Airlines currently operates over 425 daily system departures to 82 cities, 32 states, Mexico and the District of Columbia, as United Express and US Airways Express under contractual agreements with United Airlines and US Airways, respectively, and independently in Hawaii as go! The airline, founded by Larry and Janie Risley in New Mexico in 1982, has approximately 2,000 employees.

Mesa Air Group, Inc. (Mesa Airlines) (Phoenix), the number one on-time regional airline in 2010 and 2011, announces its number one rank among US regional airlines for on-time arrivals in March 2012, as reported by US Department of Transportation (DOT), Bureau of Transportation Statistics in the Air Travel Consumer Report,the industry recognized measure of performance. Mesa’s operational performance has ranked it as the number one On-time Regional Airline every month since April 2010, and the latest award reinforces Mesa’s continued commitment to serve our Code Share Partners and passengers with safe, reliable on-time air transportation. In addition to continuing its status as the number one on-time regional airline, Mesa was ranked first among regional carriers with the fewest mishandled bags and was ranked first among all airlines for having the fewest complaints per 100,000 passengers carried.

The airline’s accomplishment is especially impressive given the airline’s footprint of service in 34 states nationwide, including significant service at four of the nation’s five busiest airports. Mesa Airlines operates as US Airways Express and United Express under contractual agreements with US Airways and United Airlines, respectively, and independently as go!, a Low Fare airline which is about to enter its 6th year of offering low fares to visitors and residents of Hawai’i as the second largest inter-island airline based on passengers carried.

With these announcements about its on-time performance, Mesa is building its case for reliability.